Upon reading some science stuff about space, "The Martian" movie, and a few other things recently, I've come across a data point I've seen a number of times over my life. Unconsciousness due to a rapid decompression event will happen in ~10-15 seconds. Can anyone explain why?
I understand that holding your breath is... bad to say the least when experiencing rapid decompression. Probably fatal in explosive decompression. I understand that gasses will begin escaping your lungs very rapidly. That being said, I know that some folks can retain consciousness for a long time in the optimal settings. I think the current record holder is over 22 minutes, but that is of course on a full set of lungs. I'd think in a best case scenario (rapid decompression with plenty of warning for a record holder), they'd last longer than 15 seconds.
But obviously I'm not understanding something on the decompression side and am hoping someone here can explain what happens to the brain when the decompression event happens that causes unconsciousness. I don't think it can be a lack of oxygen. Any ideas?
I understand that holding your breath is... bad to say the least when experiencing rapid decompression. Probably fatal in explosive decompression. I understand that gasses will begin escaping your lungs very rapidly. That being said, I know that some folks can retain consciousness for a long time in the optimal settings. I think the current record holder is over 22 minutes, but that is of course on a full set of lungs. I'd think in a best case scenario (rapid decompression with plenty of warning for a record holder), they'd last longer than 15 seconds.
But obviously I'm not understanding something on the decompression side and am hoping someone here can explain what happens to the brain when the decompression event happens that causes unconsciousness. I don't think it can be a lack of oxygen. Any ideas?
via International Skeptics Forum http://ift.tt/1MshdeW
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire